Taras Chmut
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Taras Chmut | |
|---|---|
 Chmut in 2021 | |
| Native name | Тарас Миколайович Чмут |
| Born | 13 October 1991 |
| Allegiance | Ukraine |
| Branch | Ukrainian Marine Corps |
| Service years | 2015–2017 |
| Rank | Sergeant |
| Unit | |
| Known for | Militarnyi, Come Back Alive |
| Battles / wars | |
| Alma mater | National Aviation University |
Taras Mykolaiovych Chmut (Ukrainian: Тарас Миколайович Чмут; born 13 October 1991) is a Ukrainian sergeant, volunteer, and military analyst who has worked as the head of the Come Back Alive charity since 2020. He previously served as a military servicemember of the Ukrainian Marine Corps from 2015 to 2017, serving in the War in Donbas.
Taras Mykolaiovych was born in the city of Korostyshiv on 13 October 1991. His father was a businessman, while his mother was an employee of the United Nations Development Programme.[1] At the age of 16, he founded the Ukrainian Military Portal.[2] He is a graduate of the National Aviation University, specialising in Complex Pilot-Navigational Equipment.[1]
Prior to the Russo-Ukrainian War, Chmut was the coordinator of transparency non-governmental organisation Opora in Zhytomyr Oblast.[3]
On October 14, 2008, Chmut co-founded Militarnyi as a social media group.[4] Militarnyi is now Ukraine’s most prominent military news website, with over 2 million unique visitors every month.[5]
War in Donbas
Following the beginning of the War in Donbas in 2014, Chmut began volunteering to assist the Armed Forces of Ukraine through the Ukrainian Military Portal. Following his graduation from the National Aviation University, he joined the Ukrainian Marine Corps in 2015, becoming a member of the 501st Separate Naval Infantry Battalion.[2]
Chmut continued his volunteer activities while in the Marine Corps, collecting funds to modernize the SVD rifles used by his battalion's snipers, as well as providing them with other modern sniping equipment.[6] He also continued to publicly report on problems within the Armed Forces, leading to a strained relationship with his commanders and his eventual redeployment outside of the Donbas in September 2015. After being placed in a staff job in Mykolaiv, Chmut protested his redeployment, and transferred to the 137th Marine Battalion in May 2016. In the 137th Battalion, he received training from British and American instructors in military theory and the usage of unmanned aerial vehicles, respectively. He also participated in the Sea Breeze-2016 military exercises, and travelled to Lithuania, where he received further training.[7]
Following his return from Lithuania, Chmut again began fighting in the Donbas, and served two tours of duty, in October 2016 and June 2017.[7] He fought at the Shyrokyne standoff before being demobilised in 2017[8] at the rank of sergeant.[9] At the time of his departure, he was also the commander of the 137th Battalion's intelligence detachment.[1]